FSF Petition Against Rip-off Prices

FOOTBALL FANS PETITION AGAINST "RIPOFF TICKET PRICES"

Football fans throughout England & Wales have launched an online petition against rip-off ticket prices in the game.

Commenting on the petition launch FSF Chair Malcolm Clarke, a Stoke City supporter, said, "Supporters in this country are sick to the back teeth of being ripped off. My own club has just had a game at St Andrews against Birmingham City moved from Saturday at 3.00pm to Sunday at 11.30am with eight days` notice. Despite this surreal kick-off time for a professional football match we were still expected to pay £30 a ticket in the Stoke end for the privilege. It`s absolutely shameless. I`ve made an official complaint about this to both clubs and the League.'

Malcolm continued: "It`s simply not good enough. Now we have Peter Kenyon at Chelsea reported as saying that the club has no intention of lowering ticket prices as his players will be demanding big pay rises. Sorry Peter. Get real. Here on planet Earth most people view professional footballers in the Premier League as being paid enough already. I think most people would be able to get by on the average salary of a Chelsea first team squad player. Anyway Chelsea and every other club in the Premier League are going to receive extra millions in broadcasting income next season. It`s time this was shared out with the fans. The new money coming into the Premier League from next season is worth around £30 per admission over three seasons. The Premier League clubs could afford to let most fans in for nothing and still be as well off as they are today."

The online petition calls for:

* A League wide away fans` ticket price of no more than £15

* A League mandated freeze on all matchday and season ticket prices

* The use of television facilities fees for broadcast games to lower ticket prices to compensate for fixture moves and inconvenient kick-off times

Clarke commented, "Although the proposed changes are targeted at the Premier League initially, the petition is for all supporters, whether they support a club in the Conference or lower, the Football League or the Premier League. Ticket prices in this country are far too high at almost all clubs at all levels."

The petition can be found on the FSF website at:

http://www.fsf.org.uk/petitions/away-tickets/Click Here

The petition reads: I wish to protest at the extortionate ticket prices currently being charged by clubs which are driving supporters out of our game. The current widely-used system of banding teams into ticket-pricing categories penalises visiting fans of the 'bigger' clubs who can be charged up to five times more than fans of less well-supported clubs to visit the same grounds. I ask that individual clubs and the football authorities work jointly to address the issue and make football more affordable for all through a universal no more than £15 adult away ticket pricing policy, a three-season price freeze in both individual match and season ticket prices and by using the facility fee from televised games to reduce prices for those games and compensate supporters who attend for inconvenient kick off times and frequent rescheduling, occasionally at extremely short notice.

The poll is currently on over 9250 and well worth adding your name to.

So who are the FSF? www.fsf.org.ukClick Here

The FSF represents over 140,000 individual and affiliated members supporting clubs and national teams at all levels throughout England and Wales. The FSF is a voluntary organisation which campaigns on behalf of football fans at all levels of the game. The organisation was formed in 2002 when the two major fans` organisations - the Football Supporters` Association and the National Federation of Football Supporters` Clubs combined.

Click here to join in the debate on the club forum.